The money comes from the paying audience at the club so, in the end, it's down to the desire of the club to have a particular performer, and the desire of the performer to get a gig at that particular club. Hopefully a compromise is reached.

If the band I play in does a gig outside a local radius of around 30 miles from base, we cram as many of us into as few cars as possible, work out the petrol costs for the drivers and add that to the basic fee. What the basic fee is varies from gig to gig. If it's a wedding for a complete stranger, for example, we would charge around £100 a performer - plus the petrol costs. If it's a "mates or good causes" gig, then we adjust the fee accordingly.

If we can't agree the cash (which is rare), we don't do the gig!